As a new team, we only spent a little
over two weeks with Pastor Celsus and Momma Joyce in Tanzania. This
short time went by very quickly and I look forward to being able to
visit again. While we were together, it was awesome to hear how my
new teammates have come to know the Lord, what led them to The World
Race, and what God is teaching them now and for their future. We had
a light ministry load those couple of weeks, but I also believe the
extra time we had was utilized to strengthen our team.
A typical morning in Mwanza commenced
with personal quiet time followed by team time (devotions and
prayer), breakfast and door-to-door evangelism. We had lunch
together, some time to relax, more team time (service preparation)
and revival in the afternoon. Normally I could snag a run before
dinner and then we had more team time (feedback, hi/lo and prayer)
after dinner. Although our days were full, they were not stressful.
Overall, the specific culture of
Tanzania is hard for me to differentiate from the other two East
African countries (Kenya and Uganda) I have visited. In my mind they
almost blur into one large three-month African experience.
Conversely, the church with which we were involved in Mwanza will
always stick out in my mind. This church was alive and active —
not just full of adults, but crawling with children and youth.
The children participated in dancing
and singing and met once a week to practice. I saw commitment and a
desire to learn about God that was unparalleled in other African
churches I have visited. We were able to help with the children
twice while I was there and we taught them about Joshua and the
Battle of Jerico and Noah’s Ark. We got them involved and had them
march around our makeshift wall of Jerico and sound trumpets to make
it fall. We had them pair up and pretend to be animals loading the
ark made out of some pushed together benches. It was just fun to see
children involved and not looked at as a nuisance.
The youth took one week while we were
there and were in charge of all aspects of the service. This may not
sound like a lot, but this church met every day from 4-6 pm. The
youth provided all music, dancing, dramas, skits, teachers and
preachers. It was awesome to see a church willing to allow the youth
to step up and be part of something and also encourage them to step
out of their comfort zones a little.
My last Sunday there turned out to be
more exciting then I originally anticipated. At the end of the
service Pastor Celsus welcomed anyone to come to the front who wanted
to receive Jesus. Three ladies came forward. What followed was
something that I had never seen before — something that definitely
took me off guard, but something I loved. When the three women
received Jesus there was an uproar of dancing, shouting, clapping and
whistling for the Lord. They literally ran around the church for a
couple of minutes like crazy people. It was awesome. The church was
ecstatic that the ladies had put their faith and trust in the Lord
and they made it known to the world. We say that there is rejoicing
in heaven when someone comes to know the Lord, but that Sunday in
Mwanza there was rejoicing on earth! What a great reminder of how
God lavishly pours out His grace and love on us!
